The present invention is to further improve Korean Patent Application No. 2011-0002404 (entitled “The ELECTROMAGNETIC ELECTRICAL CONNECTION DEVICE”) which is previously applied by the present applicant.
As well known in the art, power is connected to an outlet as an interior wiring connector so as to be supplied to a variety of electronic products requiring power. A plug is installed to an end of a cable of an electronic product such that power is shut off and the cable is arranged when the plug is decoupled from the outlet, thereby easily transporting and storing the electronic product. Power is supplied to the electronic product when the plug is connected to the outlet, and thus the electronic product operates.
In a plug and an outlet as conventional power connection mechanisms related to such an art, as shown in FIG. 1, a plug 40 is installed to a cable 41 joined to an electronic product and plug terminals 40a protrude from an end of the plug 40. An outlet 50 is installed such that the plug terminals 40a of the plug 40 are inserted into the outlet 50. The outlet 50 is formed, at the front thereof, with a hole 51 and terminal insertion grooves 52 are symmetrically formed on a bottom surface of the hole 51.
In the conventional plug and outlet, the cable is connected, at one end thereof, to a power supply of the electronic product while being provided, at the other end thereof, with the plug 40, and the plug terminals 40a protrude from the end of the plug 40. When the plug terminals 40a of the plug 40 are inserted into the terminal insertion grooves 52 formed in the hole 51 of the outlet 50, the plug terminals 40a are electrically connected to connection pieces which are installed inside the terminal insertion grooves 52 to be connected to power, thereby supplying the power to the electronic product.
The plug 40 and the outlet 50 as the power connection mechanisms which are inserted and fastened as described above are inconvenient in that, when the plug 40 is fitted into the outlet 50 in the dark and narrow place, the plug terminals 40a of the plug 40 are exactly inserted into the terminal insertion grooves 52 of the outlet 50.
In addition, when the plug terminals 40a of the plug 40 are tightly inserted into the terminal insertion grooves 52 of the outlet 50, large force is required to decouple the plug 40. Furthermore, since there is a need to pull the cable joined to the plug 40 when the plug 40 is well not decoupled from the outlet 50, a short circuit may be generated at a connection part between the plug and the cable.
Meanwhile, the terminal insertion grooves 52 into which the plug terminals 40a of the plug 40 are inserted in the hole 51 of the outlet 50 are always opened. Accordingly, when children insert conductive objects into the terminal insertion grooves 52 due to curiosity, an electric shock accident may be caused. In addition, when foreign matters are inserted into the terminal insertion grooves 52, the plug terminals 40a of the plug 40 may not be inserted into the terminal insertion grooves 52.
The solution of the above-mentioned problems is disclosed in Korean Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-0080766 (Korean Patent Application No. 2001-0020525) of the relate art.
That is, the above relate art is constituted as shown in FIG. 2. A plug insertion portion 4 having a groove shape is formed in a case 3 of an outlet 2, and a plurality of power terminals 5 and 5′ are formed on the plane within the groove of the plug insertion portion 4. The plug insertion portion 4 is provided therein with first magnets 6 and 6′ to fix a plug 1 by magnetic force, and the plug 1 is provided with second magnets 7 and 7′ to fix the plug 1 to the plug insertion portion 4 by attractive force acting on positions corresponding to the first magnets 6 and 6′.
In addition, the plug 1 is formed with a plurality of plug terminals 8 and 8′ on the contact surface of the plug 1 so as to correspond to the plural power terminals 5 and 5′ formed within the plug insertion portion 4. The case 3 of the outlet 2 is formed therein with safety switches 10 and 10′ which turn on/off power by magnetic force, and the plug 1 is formed with third magnets 9 and 9′ to operate the safety switches 10 and 10′ by magnetic force. In this case, the safety switches 10 and 10′ include first contact 11 and 11′ connected to the power terminals 5 and 5′, second contacts 12 and 12′ connected to power supply lines 20 and 20′, switch portions 13 and 13′ which move by magnetic force of the third magnets 9 and 9′ and connect the first contact 11 and 11′ to the second contacts 12 and 12′, and elastic bodies 14 and 14′ which are elastic restoring means to return the switch portions 13 and 13′ to original positions when the magnetic force of the third magnets 9 and 9′ do not affected thereto, respectively. In this case, the switch portions 13 and 13′ are ferromagnetic bodies and conductive substances, and are configured to be moved by attractive force acting between the third magnets 9 and 9′ and the switch portions 13 and 13′.
However, the switch portions 13 and 13′ may also be moved by installing magnets to the switch portions 13 and 13′ such that repulsive force acts between the third magnets 9 and 9′ and the switch portions 13 and 13′. In addition, in order to easily adjust contact positions between the power terminals 5 and 5′ and the plug terminals 8 and 8′, the related art is configured such that the contact positions may be exactly adjusted by attractive force by forming concave-convex portions at the installation positions of the first magnets 6 and 6′, the second magnets and 7′, and the third magnets 9 and 9′. However, the related art may also be configured such that coupling directions and positions between the power terminals 5 and 5′ and the plug terminals 8 and 8′ may be exactly adjusted by forming separate concave-convex portions in addition to such a configuration.
Accordingly, if the plug 1 is inserted into the plug insertion portion 4 of the outlet 2, attractive force acts between the first magnets 6 and 6′ formed in the outlet 2 and the second magnets 7 and 7′ formed in the plug 1. Consequently, the plug 1 may be inserted into and simply attached to the plug insertion portion 4 of the outlet 2 without separation from each other. Thus, the power terminals 5 and 5′ of the outlet 2 come into contact with the plug terminals 8 and 8′ of the plug 1, thereby forming a circuit.
In addition, the power terminals 5 and 5′ come into contact with the plug terminals 8 and 8′ and the switch portions 13 and 13′ of the safety switches 10 and 10′ are moved by attractive force of the third magnets 9 and 9′ so as to connect the first contacts 11 and 11′ to the second contacts 12 and 12′, with the consequence that the power supply lines 20 and 20′ and the power terminals 5 and 5′ are connected to each other. Consequently, the circuit is formed such that power is supplied to the power terminals 5 and 5′ and is supplied to the electronic product through the plug terminals 8 and 8′ coming into contact with the power terminals 5 and 5′.
Meanwhile, in a case of decoupling the plug 1 from the plug insertion portion 4 of the outlet 2, the plug 1 and the plug insertion portion 4 may be easily separated from each other even when large force is not applied thereto only because of coming into contact with each other by attractive force of the magnets. When the plug 1 is decoupled from the plug insertion portion 4 of the outlet 2, the power terminals 5 and 5′ and the plug terminals 8 and 8′ are separated from each other and the attractive force of the third magnets 9 and 9′ which allows the switch portions 13 and 13′ of the safety switches 10 and 10′ to be moved is removed. As a result, as the switch portions 13 and 13′ are returned to original positions by the elastic bodies 14 and 14′, the connection between the first contact 11 and 11′ and the second contacts 12 and 12′ is disconnected so that power is not supplied to the power terminals 5 and 5′. Accordingly, even if the power terminals 5 and 5′ are touched by a user's fingers or come into contact with chopsticks or the like, electrical accidents may be prevented in advance because the power is not supplied thereto.
However, the above related art has the following several problems.
That is, the above related art is pointed out as a major problem in that it may not be used in other electronic products in addition to having simple functions such as the plug and the outlet.
Particularly, the above related art has a serious problem in that it may not be possible to provide various effects such as noise isolation, stability, and waterproofing functions during connection of an electrical connection device.